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August 1, 2013

UBS Adds Morgan Stanley Advisor, but Loses Team to Boutique Firm

A group of Wells Fargo reps with about $220 million in assets departs to go independent with an LPL affiliate

UBS heradquarters in New York. (Photo: AP)

UBS (UBS) said Wednesday that it had recruited an advisor from rival Morgan Stanley (MS). It also saw a team depart to go independent and affiliate with a boutique investment firm.

Elaina S. Spilove joined UBS in Princeton, N.J., from Graystone Consulting, a business of Morgan Stanley. Spilove is a senior institutional consultant and will be joining the UBS Institutional Consulting Group, where she is reporting to complex director John E. Geoghan in Red Bank N.J.

A 30-year veteran of the financial-services industry, Spilove had about $224 million in assets under management, according to Morgan Stanley. Her clients included public funds, endowments, foundations, various trade associations, pensions, profit-sharing plans and private clients, and she holds the designation of Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA) from the Investment Management Consultants Association (IMCA).

Also on Wednesday, New York-based Further Lane Wealth Management said former-UBS advisors Stuart Conley and Harvey Spira have joined the boutique firm as managing directors.

"The team's quality, experience and expertise are impressive. Stuart and Harvey have significant investment management experience and strong skills as portfolio managers. Both have outstanding investment track records that we plan to leverage," said Michael Araiz, CEO of Further Lane, in a press release.

Conley and Spira's clients include professionals, business owners and corporate executives. The reps have worked on pre-sale and pre-IPO planning, exit strategies for business owners and executives, and retirement and legacy planning.

“I made the move to independence so that I can more effectively execute robust investment strategies on behalf of my clients. With complete open architecture, I have increased flexibility in the solutions I can provide my clients from a portfolio risk and return standpoint,” said Stuart Conley, in a press release.

Further Lane says it works with Dynasty Financial Partners, Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services and Pershing so that its advisors can offer clients a variety of products and services.

Conley has over 17 years of experience in the industry and, prior to joining UBS, was a director of investments at Oppenheimer and a financial advisor at Smith Barney.

“If you want to provide your clients with the best out-of-the-box solutions in a timely manner, independence is the only way to go. We are looking forward to offering our clients the best investment opportunities in the market,” said Spira, in a statement.

Spira worked as a managing director at Bear Stearns, before moving to UBS. He is on the financial planning committee of the New York State Society of CPAs.

LPL Affiliate

Washington Wealth Management, an independent hybrid RIA that uses LPL Financial (LPLA) as its broker-dealer, said Tuesday that it recruited a team from Wells Fargo Advisors to its platform.

Kimball Creek Partners, an independent group based in Bellevue, Wash., has had about $220 million in client assets under management. It includes Dean Bennion, CFP, and Mike Vincent, CFP, who each had worked at Wells and Wachovia for over a decade.

“Kimball Creek’s decision to maximize its opportunities for growth and independence by joining our team further demonstrates the strength of Washington Wealth Management’s robust multi-custodial platform, which enables exceptional former wirehouse advisors to expand their practices by transitioning to the independent channel,” said Washington Wealth CEO Robert Bartenstein, in a press release.

With this addition, Washington Wealth is nearing $1 billion in client assets under management.

“We chose to partner with Washington Wealth Management because they respected our business model and unique service offering, yet also provided an increased range of products and support from a spectrum of providers,” said Bennion, in a statement.